The "Final" Houdini Seance, part three

Dr. Edward Saint: Tonight we are in the very heart of glamorous Hollywood that Houdini loved so well. He lived here. He worked here. Houdini loved Hollywood. And Harry and Bessie Houdini celebrated their twenty-fifth, their silver wedding anniversary here, and all the greats of Hollywood were present. And Houdini made a speech and said, “You are all invited now to be at our fiftieth, our Golden Wedding ceremony.” And Will Rogers got up and gave an impersonation and said, “Houdini, I’ll be here, but this is the way I’ll be coming in,” and he walked like an aged old man with a cane.

Will Rogers is gone. Houdini is gone. Nearly two-thirds of that famous gathering is gone. But this is the kind of a night they all would have loved. Nothing could have kept them away. It’s a Houdini night, with the spotlight of the public on Houdini, with the whole world paused to see or hear Houdini step on this side of the curtain. Now, let us bow our heads in meditation and prayer.

O, thou Mastermind of the Universe, please let the spirit of understanding descend upon us that are gathered here in the Inner Circle tonight. We are each in his own way seekers after truth, please let thy spirit of understanding guide us and bring the light of truth to the many friends that have earnestly formed psychic circles and gatherings throughout the entire world. Aid us, guide us on this most important question of mankind: spirit communication from across the grave. We ask this universal understanding in all humbleness, and we offer our grateful thanks to thee. Guide us please, Amen.

O, thou disembodied spirits, those of you that have grown old in the mysterious laws of spirit land, we greet thee. We have gathered here at the appointed time; we have complied with all of the requirements to enable all of you to make your presence known. Members of the spirit world have long known of the intention of this important gathering tonight. All is in readiness. Please now, the time is at hand. Make yourself known to us, any of you please. Manifest yourself in any way possible. Please let your united strength and knowledge aid Houdini in coming through. It is the spirit of Houdini we wish to contact.

Houdini, are you here? Are you here, Houdini? Please manifest yourself in any way possible! Take from this earnest gathering any strength that may be necessary for you to use. Take any vital thing from us as you may need to enable you to carry out your promise of years ago. We have waited, Houdini, oh so long. Never have you been able to present the evidence you promised. And now, this is a night of nights. The world is listening. Harry, your world, your audience. And Bessie is here, your Bessie, who was part of you for thirty-three years -- she is here, Harry, pleading in her heart for a prearranged sign from you. It means so much to her, to all of us, to the world. Harry, we are all seekers after truth. Please manifest yourself by speaking through the trumpet. Lift it, lift it! Speak through it, speak! Speak, Harry! We are watching and waiting, Harry. Levitate the table. Move it. Lift the table, move it, rap on it! Spell out a code, Harry, please! Ring the bell. Let its tinkle be heard around the world. Do it, Harry! Please! Please, Houdini, we are waiting, Bessie is waiting!

O, thou spirit, your religion is based on love, and by that very token, a love of 33 years that has even entered into eternity, by that love I ask that you come through with the evidence. By the love of the little silver-haired widow, by the love and esteem of the countless friends -- the evidence, Harry! And Houdini, Houdini, Dash -- Dash is listening in; Dash, Hardeen, your brother. Your brother has joined us with a circle he has formed in New York City, three thousand miles away. He had joined with us to seek the truth. And a circle in Baltimore. Philadelphia is listening in; in Providence; in Chicago, Leonard, who was once a protege of yours; a circle in Portland, Maine. And in the faithful city of Detroit; in Victoria, Canada; Takoma; Rockford; Oakland and San Francisco -- all over the world, all joining in, come through Harry! And Houdini, Colonel Harry Day, member of the British Parliament, has formed a circle in London, England. Colonel Day was your closest boyhood friend. Houdini, you must come through. And at the bottom of the world, Australia, the country where you made history has joined in. We are crying to high heaven, to the powers that be, we are crying in one mighty magnetic voice from every corner of the Earth, and the hearts and minds of them who choose are centered here tonight. We want the evidence, the truth! In the name of humanity and love, if there is communication from the great beyond, come through with the evidence!

Narrator: Then followed calm and silent meditation. And again, a tense and dramatic soul pleading, in which Mrs. Houdini joined Dr. Saint. But no sign from Houdini. At last Dr. Saint, in a voice that broke, and filled with emotion, asked:

Dr. Edward Saint: Mrs. Houdini, the zero hour has passed. The ten years are up. Have you reached a decision?

Mrs. Houdini: Yes. Houdini did not come through. My last hope is gone. I do not believe that Houdini can come back to me, or to anyone. After faithfully following through the ten-year Houdini compact, using every type medium and seance, it is now my personal and positive belief, that spirit communication in any form is impossible. I do not believe that ghosts or spirits exist. The Houdini shrine has burned for ten years. I now, reverently, turn out the light. It is finished. Good night, Harry.

Narrator: Beatrice Houdini turned, and with Dr. Saint left the roof, and stepped inside, while the others waited respectfully at a distance. And suddenly, a long low distant rumble of thunder was heard. It began to rain. Now remember, those skies had been clear but a few moments before. It rained just long enough to wet everyone on the roof of the Hollywood Knickerbocker Hotel. And then it stopped, and didn’t rain again all evening. To people who do not live in California, this may not seem strange. But California does not have showers as do the East and Midwest. The country out here is rainless for months. And when rain comes it rains for days. A brief heavy rain is an unheard-of phenomenon. Was that a sign? I recall a very dear friend of mine, a magician who was with me on the roof at the time of that seance, stating as he left the roof: “Houdini wasn’t that sort of man; Houdini was too big of a man, to come back and shake insignificant little bells, to write his name on a piece of slate, or to toot horns. Harry Houdini was a dynamic personality. Harry Houdini was a man of great ego. Harry Houdini was a man of great force. Harry Houdini, if he could return, would not have returned as a horn-tooter, but perhaps as something dynamic, as something great, as something forceful. Perhaps...as a drop of Heaven’s rain."
[The recording concludes with the sound of thunder.]

If you'd like to hear the recording for yourself, you can find it at The Internet Archive.

Hope you enjoyed this. Happy Halloween!

The "Final" Houdini Seance, part two...

Dr. Edward Saint: Ladies and Gentlemen, in this cathedral-like atmosphere tonight, I wish to remind you that this is a most solemn occasion for the close friends that have gathered here. That the zero hour of the tenth anniversary of our departed friend is fast nearing the end, and that the results of tonight are primarily of a personal and private nature only. No attempt is being made to sway the world, or to convince the skeptics one way or the other. This is a personal gathering aiding Mrs. Houdini in completing her ten-year vigil, and to aid Mrs. Houdini and ourselves to a final and logical conclusion. Nor is it expected or intended that others must necessarily agree. But, this last personal attempt to contact the spirit of Houdini has aroused interest throughout the world, and to that extent will the findings here tonight be publicly recorded. We wish it distinctly understood that in this last and final attempt, we are interested in Houdini coming to us instead of to a stranger. Should Houdini contact a stranger anywhere in the world tonight, we know that Houdini will leave proper identification.

On behalf of Mrs. Harry Houdini, I wish to thank all members of the press, both local and worldwide, the various national magazines, and the hundreds of individuals throughout the world that have aided. I wish to thank the sincere friends in the four corners of the United States, Canada and Europe, in the forming of twenty or more simultaneous seances, coinciding with our final attempt here in Hollywood. I wish to thank the several hundred friends, trained observers, and several dozen renowned psychics and mediums that are present with us here tonight, and especially, the past president of the California State Spiritualist Association, present here tonight, whose kindly advice has been of great value.

Every facility has been provided tonight that might aid in opening a pathway to the spirit world. Here in the inner circle reposes a medium’s trumpet, a pair of slates with chalk, a writing tablet, and pencil, a small bell, and in the center reposes a huge pair of silver handcuffs, on a silk cushion. Facing the inner circle, stands the famous Houdini shrine, with its doors ajar.

The world knows that the Houdinis were always open-minded regarding spirit communication. Houdini sought to communicate with his beloved mother after she passed on, but he found no evidence that he could rely upon. The Houdinis always believed that in their search, if you remove the fraud, what is left must be the truth, and they together were always seekers after truth. Before Houdini’s death, the Houdinis made a compact that the first to go would try to contact the survivor. Houdini had promised to deliver a message in code, to his wife, also to open the silver handcuffs, and other signs, if he should pass over first. It so happens that Mrs. Houdini survives, and she made it a sacred duty to carry out the terms of the compact.

The first year found Mrs. Houdini every Sunday between the hours of 12 noon and 2 o’clock, locked up in the privacy of her own room, seated in front of Houdini’s photograph, waiting for some sign of Houdini, as prearranged in the compact. The truth regarding spirit communication was to Harry and Bessie Houdini a very sincere and profound question. During the following years, each anniversary of his death has been devoted to Houdini. During the last ten years, there have been times that Mrs. Houdini felt that surely, Houdini was coming through, that her hope of communication would be fulfilled. She was willing to believe, but the evidence did not stand up.

At no time has Mrs. Houdini ever received a psychic communication from Houdini, nor has anything occurred anywhere in the world that would lead Mrs. Houdini to believe that Houdini was trying to come through. Yet, hundreds of alleged psychics and mediums have written in and stated that Houdini has appeared to them in some form or other. In Chicago they said he walked boldly into a room. In Kansas City, Houdini was said to have written a long letter to Mrs. Houdini. In Long Beach, Houdini was said to hypnotize the medium, and then delivered a message through her. In New Zealand, he drank a cup of tea. And in Santa Monica, he escaped from several pair of handcuffs by dematerializing his hands.

These things may be. Surely, it is not for Mrs. Houdini to decide. But we all believe, and many prominent psychics agree, that if Houdini has appeared all over the world in spirit form, under every kind of manifestation, and doing this many times every week of every year of the last ten years, then we believe that the great Houdini will, on this last authentic seance, come to the little silver-haired widow -- the little lady who for thirty-three years stood by the side of her beloved Harry, listening to the applause of kings and emperors, and the world at large. A few days before his death in Detroit, Houdini, in a most strong and firm reminder again said, “Bess, Darling, I’ll come back to you, if it is possible -- even if I have to go through Hell to do it.” That was Houdini talking.

Houdini was an editor of the old New York World. He was an honorary Lieutenant of Police, and instructed a class of detectives and officers of the police force regularly in New York City. He was the author of many books, a writer of many magazine articles, a publisher of a national magazine, head of many magical organizations throughout the world including societies in Berlin, London, and New York City. Member of the exclusive Circumnavigators Club, the Masons, the Elks, and many others. He headed investigating committees that led him to appear on the floor of Congress at Washington D.C. "The Houdinis," Harry and Bessie, presented a remarkable magic act in the palaces of Europe and throughout the world. Houdini was working in secret with Thomas A. Edison on a delicate psychic detecting instrument and a process that would permit him to take flashlight photographs in the dark without the flash being visible. A thousand interests had Houdini, besides his search and collecting of rare first editions to make his library on magic and occultism the largest private collection in the world -- which led to the creating of the Houdini Room, in the Congressional library in Washington DC today. Houdini spent much time in aeronautics, wrote authoritatively on the subject, and was one of the first seventeen fliers in the world, owned his own plane, and was the first man to ever successfully fly an airplane in Australia, winning the aerial trophy in Melbourne, Australia, March 15th, 1910. That, in brief, was the man Houdini.

He had safes and vaults in his home, and vaults in banks that his lawyers had access to. But one secret now made public for the first time, is the fact that Houdini had one safe deposit vault, in a bank or trust company in the East, under some familiar name other than Houdini, and of which the secret location rested only in Houdini’s brain. In this vault was kept highly secret papers, and into which was always place a certain glass case of jeweled metals, and a diamond question mark pin with a rare pearl drop -- a gift from Harry Kellar to Houdini. The jewel box was always on display in the Houdini home, but prior to closing the house to go on a vaudeville tour, Houdini always placed this box in the secret vault. Many things were left untold because of the unexpected death of Houdini in Detroit. There is a law, a time limit; Madame Houdini has year by year awaited word, that the federal government had located or opened the box long overdue. Perhaps the vault rent had been paid years in advance; however, this secret vault has never been located to this day. No medium or psychic has ever brought forth information from Houdini, or the spirit world, touching on or leading to its discovery. So if any circle tonight, in any town in the world, believes that they are contacting Houdini, let them identify themselves by bringing forth this information regarding the secret vault. [ ...to be continued... ]


Next time: Saint pleads with the spirits, and Bess reaches a decision.

The "Final" Houdini Seance, part one

Those who are aware of my real identity know that I'm a big Houdini aficionado, and that I spent many years researching Houdini's life and writing about him.

Like Houdini, I don't believe in "mediums" or "spiritualists." Nevertheless I find it fascinating that 83 years after Houdini's death, people are still holding seances in the hopes of hearing from him. As great a showman and "escapologist" as Houdini was, so much of his mystique today, his larger-than-life mythology, is inextricably linked to mysticism and the supernatural. The "spirit of Houdini" has never been able to answer the question of whether consciousness lives on beyond the grave, and ironically, it's his very silence on this matter that has contributed to his immortality.

Great personalities who die young remain larger-than-life forever, and people never forget a great unsolved mystery. Thus Houdini's premature death at the height of his fame, as well as the enduring "cliffhanger" of his promised return from the grave, have kept his memory alive for 83 years, and will no doubt keep it alive for centuries to come.

In honor of the anniversary of Houdini's death (Halloween), I bring you a transcript of the final "official" Houdini seance, performed on the rooftop of the Knickerbocker Hotel in Hollywood on October 31, 1936. The recording was released in 1959 and is introduced by a narrator; I've included that preamble here. As the whole recording is really long, I'm going to split it into three posts. The second installment will contain hints about Houdini's "secret vault" -- (a mystery within a mystery).


Transcript, Part One:

Narrator [George L. Boston]: Houdini, the greatest showman that ever walked this Earth, died October 31, 1926. Prior to his death, he was seeking out and exposing fraudulent spirit mediums. He boasted that there was nothing that a spirit medium could produce by way of alleged psychic phenomena that he could not reproduce by trickery. Despite this he took no chances. He and his wife, the late Beatrice Houdini, resolved between them that, whichever one died before the other, that one would try to contact the survivor. They further agreed upon a secret code. This was decided upon to prevent fraudulent mediums or magicians from claiming that they were able to contact either one of the Houdinis. It was further agreed that the survivor would use every type of conceivable seance to contact the deceased. That, once each year, on the anniversary of the death, the survivor would hold a small gathering of friends, so that some message might possibly be heard. All attempts were to be discontinued after ten years.

Houdini died first; his widow did not succumb until 1942.

For nine years after Harry Houdini’s death, she tried to reach him. Once she seemed to believe that Arthur Ford, the celebrated spirit medium, had actually reached her husband. Later she decided she had been mistaken; that Mr. Ford had not received the real code message.

There were, during those years, almost daily reports of Houdini’s spirit visiting mediums all over the world, but not a single instance could actually be proven. It is notable, however, that Houdini definitely did not contact the one living person he had loved most -- his wife.

Thus it went, til October 31, 1936. This was the tenth anniversary of Harry Houdini’s death. After this date Mrs. Houdini was to stop searching; the tenth seance was to be the final one. In charge of arrangements was the late Dr. Edward Saint, an old-time showman and Mrs. Houdini’s business advisor. Dr. Saint decided the affair should achieve epic proportions, and proceeded accordingly.

The roof of the Knickerbocker Hotel in Hollywood, California was rented for the occasion. Now the Knickerbocker is just about one block from the intersection of Hollywood and Vine, the movie capital’s most fabulous street. A bleacher-like seating arrangement was built, which could accommodate about 300 people, and fully this many were invited by engraved invitation. Sound equipment and a special lighting system was installed. Seats for the inner circle were arranged directly in front of the bleachers. As early as 7 o’clock in the evening the invited guests began to assemble. People from all walks of life, but chiefly magicians, spiritualists, newspapermen, and others who had special interest in the affair.

Up there on that roof it was uncommonly cold. The sky above was clear and bright, with the stars shining brilliantly. It was so cold that most of the invited guests were actually chilled. Making up the inner circle were: Mrs. Houdini and Dr. Edward Saint; the Honorable Charles Fricke, a judge of the California High Court; two newspapermen; a past president of the California Spiritualist Organization; a member of the American Institute of Psychic Research, Hereward Carrington; and two magicians. One of the magicians was Caryl Fleming, then president of the Pacific Coast Association of Magicians, and the other was a publisher of a magazine devoted to the concerns of the conjurers, William W. Larsen Sr.

On a table in front of Mrs. Houdini and Dr Saint was a small altar bearing a picture of Houdini. Over the table [clearly he meant to say “altar” - A.U.] a tiny light which had burned for ten years. On a low stand in the center of the inner circle was a small table. On it was located a pistol, loaded with blank cartridges; a tambourine; a locked pair of handcuffs which had never been unlocked since Houdini’s death; a slate; a bit of chalk; a large bell; and a trumpet. In addition to manifesting himself to Mrs. Houdini, via the secret code, Harry Houdini’s spirit was to be prevailed upon to shoot the gun, unlock the cuffs, talk through the trumpet, and so on through the list of objects. Such were the proposed tests.

Now it seems that Dr. D. Jalini [I am uncertain of the correct spelling. - A.U.], a well-known west coast mystery worker, and a few other outstanding magicians, didn’t really believe that anything was going to happen. They feared that the invited guests and the waiting world were doomed to bitter disappointment, and possible disillusionment. So, they offered their services to help better matters. It would be excellent, they told Dr. Saint, to get Houdini’s handwriting on the slate, and they could assure its appearance there. Or to cause a dove to fly up from the center of the table, seemingly created out of nothing.

Dr. Saint wisely refused these generous “offers.” The seance was to be conducted on a strictly legitimate basis; the tricks of the conjurers were taboo. Promptly at 8 o’clock began the regal music of Pomp and Circumstance -- this was the last music that Houdini ever used; he had always opened and closed his act with this music. Here is the actual voice of Dr. Edward Saint, recorded during the seance on that memorable night, October 31, 1936. [...to be continued...]


Next time: Part Two, the actual seance from 1936.

Special recipe: Houdini's last meal

On Sunday, October 24th, 1926, Houdini collapsed after struggling through a show at Detroit's Garrick Theater. For quite some time he'd been suffering from crippling abdominal pains and a very high fever, but then, he'd always been accustomed to ignoring pain.

After the show, despite pleas from his wife that he go to the hospital, Houdini stubbornly returned to his hotel. There, the hotel's house physician, a 25-year-old just out of medical school named Daniel Cohn, insisted that Houdini go to the hospital immediately. It still took some time to convince him, but Houdini finally relented, and was taken to Detroit's Grace Hospital late that night. Around 3:00 the following afternoon (October 25th), doctors operated, and as soon as they opened him up they knew Houdini was doomed. They removed his gangrenous, ruptured appendix, sewed him up, and assumed he would die in a matter of hours.

By sheer force of will, he lasted almost a week. He died at 1:26 on Sunday afternoon, October 31, 1926 -- Halloween.

During Houdini's last week, Houdini told Dr. Cohn that he had a "yen for Farmer's Chop Suey," a dish popular with Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe. This craving was no doubt one of nostalgia rather than hunger, as Houdini was gravely ill with peritonitis and virtually unable to eat. It may also have been a response to his very high fever, as the chilled, creamy salad was traditionally eaten on hot summer days.

Eager to do anything that might make Houdini's final days more pleasant, the young doctor hurried over to a nearby deli and returned with some Farmer's Chop Suey, which he shared with his famous patient. It is apparently the last meal Houdini ever ate.

Houdini was a man of substantial wealth, who had traveled all over the world and who frequently dined with celebrities and royalty. So it's interesting, though perhaps not surprising, that his final meal request would be for a simple peasant dish: comfort food.

In honor of Houdini, I bring you a recipe for his "last meal." Please note: there is no single "right way" to make Farmer's Chop Suey (though your Jewish grandmother will no doubt insist that HER way is the right way). It is by its nature a mish-mosh of available raw vegetables, so feel free to adjust it to suit your tastes. But do keep the radishes -- they give the dish its zing.


FARMER'S CHOP SUEY

Dressing:
1 cup sour cream
1 cup cottage cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper

Raw veggies:
1 cup lettuce, shredded, or 1 cup chopped celery, or 1 cup shredded cabbage
1/2 cup radishes, diced
1/2 cup cucumbers, chopped roughly
1/2 cup carrots, thinly sliced
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1/4 cup sweet onions or green onions

Mix together sour cream and cottage cheese, salt, and white pepper.
Gently fold in veggies, until all are well-coated with the cream.

Chill mixture well before serving.
Enjoy!


Next time: The 1936 Hollywood seance; or, What's the deal with "Houdini's secret vault" anyway?